With broad-based improvement on the Strip, executives at MGM Resorts International are focusing much of their energy outside of Las Vegas on new developments and opportunities.
“On the development front, our second property in Macau is well under way. A bunch of us were there just last week and we came away very, very pleased with the progress,” said Jim Murren, MGM’s chairman and CEO, during a second quarter earnings call with analysts.
Excavation on the project is largely complete and recently disclosed lead architect KPF is working with the company’s in-house architect and design team to finalise exteriors and interiors.
Elsewhere in Asia, MGM officials have been “very active” in Japan. “There's a growing consensus there that gaming will be expanded and we plan to participate in that process. I think our operating and development expertise as well as our ability to be good partners are great advantages for us,” Murren said.
And in Korea, the government is considering legislation to permit integrated resorts. “The view is becoming more favourable in Korea, so we'll have to see. But that is potentially, again, a very large opportunity,” he said.
